Unless you’ve been living under a rock this year, you’re probably aware that the 3DS had a pretty rocky start following its spring debut. With too ambitious of an initial price tag and a complete lack of quality software, it’s pretty obvious to see why the system struggled. It wasn’t until summer when things for the system really turned around, thanks to the combined efforts of the Zelda and Star Fox remakes, and the added push of a hefty price drop. I think it’s this early pressure that lit a fire under Nintendo’s first-party development houses to start cranking out their flagship franchises even faster than they had anticipated. Do I think this may have effected the quality of Mario Kart 7? Absolutely.